Snowden’s future not on Kremlin’s agenda - Peskov

Earlier Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa Delgado said, "A decision on Snowden’s location is in the hands of the Russian authorities"

Share

1 pages in this article

MOSCOW, June 30 (Itar-Tass) - The future of former CIA agent Edward Snowden is not on the agenda of the Kremlin, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Echo of Moscow radio station on Sunday.

He recalled that during his visit to Finland President Vladimir Putin gave his assessment of the situation and “clearly stated that de jure Snowden did not enter the Russian Federation and did not cross the border.”

“Moreover, the president said he does not address this issue and prefers that corresponding services do this job. Therefore this theme is not on the agenda of the Kremlin,” Peskov said.

“As long as this is not our issue, I do not know what variants of developments can be and what legal and other aspects of this theme exist. I cannot say or explain anything or give any assessment,” he said.

Peskov also noted that the Kremlin “registers a wide range of opinions expressed by different experts and human rights activists” on this issue.

“Public opinion on this theme is very diverse. We know about this and take this into consideration,” he said.

Earlier Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa Delgado said, “A decision on Snowden’s location is in the hands of the Russian authorities.”

“For his political asylum bid to be considered, he should stay on the territory of Ecuador,” he was quoted by the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency as saying.

Edward Snowden is charged with violating U.S. espionage laws for leaking information about the National Security Agency’s surveillance of Internet and telephone records. He fled to Hong Kong and later left it for Moscow.

According to recent media reports, Snowden is believed to stay in the transit zone of Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport.